Tag Archive: Wisconsin

The most frequently visited image on this site is the “Bird on a Wire” image, which is also the first post ever made to this blog. I found it curious that an image that is so technically deficient, is the most sought after (and downloaded!) image on this site. This isn’t just because it’s the oldest image on the site, but consistently remains the top viewed image on the site month after month.

A little history of this image and why it is so important to me, and why I chose it as my logo.

The original image was photographed in Racine, Wisconsin and is of a robin perched on a telephone wire. The image itself was rather unremarkable. It was the first photo taken with my then-new Panasonic Lumix FZ-28 (outside of my home and family photos). It was also the first image I tried to post-process. It was underexposed and rather drab when it came to color and contrast.

Just as a lark I converted it to grayscale, reduced the color count to 16 and jacked up the contrast to max. This was the result.

I can’t answer why so many seek this image and why it is so commonly ‘borrowed’ from my site, but I can answer why it means so much to me. Often, when looking through the view-finder of my camera, I feel like I’m separate from the event. I’m distant or almost hidden from the subjects. Many of the youth at church will refer to me as the ‘camera stalker’ as I creep around capturing photos at the many events we have. In short, I feel like this bird when doing my photography. I’m there, not hidden, but apart from it all and viewing everything from my perch from a unique perspective.

Notice the detail in the claws, wire and beak. I can stare at this image for extended periods, and in its simplicity still find it fascinating.